The End, already.

"From writing on a blog I am hoping that it will help me grow as a writer. I want to learn more about getting my own voice in my writing. And I think that a blog will help me learn and get better."
Wow. I can say that it is crazy to go back and read a blog from September 20, 2010 that was written by me, not that long ago. But it seems like years ago. I said that I wanted to find my voice in writing, and honestly, this year I believe I did. I think this class gave me the constant freedom to be who I wanted to be, not who I thought I should be. If I wanted to memorize a poem about a wife being abused, I could. If I wanted to write an entire essay about broken hearts, no matter how depressing it would be, I could. If I wanted to read "The Secret Life of Bees" out of the list of fifty books, I could. Being given the freedom to develop as a person and as a writer is probably the most important thing I will take from this class. When you can just write, and not have to worry about your view on the book being wrong, I think you can't help but grow in the right direction. And I think as the year went on, my blogs got deeper. I wasn't just answering the question. I was saying how I felt about it and how I could relate it to any piece of material we where reading and my own life.
Reading back through every blog, I was surprised that I could tell that I was willingly responding better. I didn't realize that I was changing. That my words where becoming something bigger than they had before. That I wasn't just reading & writing. I was interpreting and comparing. Scratching under the surface, and far below it to question the author's motives, and questioning it again tell I felt I knew where he was coming from. Maybe that poem wasn't just about a flower. Maybe it was about the root, the part no one sees. Maybe it is about the personal struggle every person goes through on earth that no one sees, because it is below the dirt line. Maybe Dickens' novel wasn't just a simple story about a boy. Maybe I could relate to it more when I saw the similarities between that story and a famous Disney one about a lonely glass slipper. And by pushing my boundaries, to places I thought I would never reach, I got better.
The first time I was assigned an essay I thought I was going to a land of nightmares where I would never be able to get a decent grade because they was no way I could have that many ideas about a single book. Not just ideas, but personal ideas. Personal views and opinions. Not someone's else. Mine. But I made it through it and I was challenged. And now an essay seem like a normal thing. A blog seem like fun. My opinion seems necessary. A poem seems like a small peek into an author's world. Honors English seems like a rational class. And writing seems like a hobby.

"You'd know how the time flies. Only yesterday was the time of our lives. We where born and raised, in a summer haze. Bound by the surprise of our glory days."- Adele
When I look back at my blogs, the main thing see is that I have moved forward. I have learned. And I have grown. From my first blog saying I wanted to find my voice. To my "Boo Radley" being death. To my fairy tale Prince Charming being compared to Great Expectations. I will miss this class so much. I can't think of a better way to start off every morning of my freshman year, because I had a great class! And yes Mrs. Gilman, I will read over the summer, just not anything involving Charles Dickens! (:

My Favoirte Project!

Well first off, I can't believe I am already doing a blog on my favorite assignment of the year because to be honest, there was points in this year when I thought it would never end! So just making it here makes me beyond happy. But my favorite part of the year was near the end when we read Romeo & Juliet. I don't think it was anyone surprise that I loved the book and all the things that came with it. I also enjoyed Romero & Juliet because my that point in the year I felt comfortable in my class, in my abilities, and my work ethic in the class.
I am proud of this assignment because I not only finished an entire Shakespeare play, but I also wrote a five paragraph essay on it. Which is something I am really proud to say, because at the beginning of the lesson, I was scared I wouldn't be able to do it. And I not only finished it, I had a great time with all the projects and the acting out the scenes. And I think I speak for the class that Romero & Juliet was an enjoyable time when we not only had fun, we also learned! I hope many, many classes keep reading Romero & Juliet in the future because it was my favorite book this year and the assignments where the most enjoyable!

A Good Experience With Poetry

Well my poetry background is pretty limited to what we have learned in school. My family has never been big poetry fans besides when a child in question is under the age of 6, and needs something to put it to sleep. So basically what we have learned K-9, is what I know. But one memory of poetry does stick out in my mind so far, and that memory starts with the all inspiring words, "Poetry Out Loud."
Poetry Out Loud. I am pretty sure that all Freshman know this term very well and I would bet a good percent of the school knows it too. I learned what it was during a normal period of Honors English when Mrs. Gilman started the class with her forever frightening phrase, "We are starting something new and I love it." She started explaining how we as students would be picking our own poem, memorizing it, performing it, and acting it out in a way. At first I was scared to death. I had never done anything like this before, and I already didn't like it. But as we progressed, I enjoyed it more and more. We got to pick our own poems, and I knew that I wanted something different. And something that I could add to the poem, without completely ruining it.
I could probably still say my poem by heart, because of all the time I spent memorizing it. I picked a poem about women and how they used to lose power in marriages. I honestly am very glad I got up there and did it. I went first to get it over, and yes I did forget a line or two, but I did it. And now whenever anyone says anything about poetry I think of that moment. When I bought a poem to life all by myself. With my words, and my actions, I made the phrases literally jump of the page.
Right now, my attitude towards poetry is that is can be used in a lot of different forms. You can use it in love, in debates, and in fun. And you can write your heart out. When I think of poetry know, I think of you letting someone in to your world and letting them read your thoughts. Opening up your views to the world, in a way that isn't just sitting them down and telling them to their face.